Page 50 of Inception

I put my cup down and refilled my drink.

“I saw you at the game yesterday,” he said, bending forward slightly to catch my eye, his chestnut hair and high cheekbones highlighted under the dim overhead lights. “I wanted to talk to you after the game, but you left before I got a chance.”

“Sorry, I had an early curfew—”

“Thanks for bringing the lady-bandit,” interrupted Ben, appearing beside Caleb and I, visibly annoyed as he nudged his chin towards Dominic and his adoring fan-girls. “There’s like fifteen girls around him.”

“No there isn’t.” I stifled a laugh. “There’s probably like five, six tops.” It didn’t matter either way, I was fairly certain that Ben was only concerned aboutoneparticular girl from the bunch anyway. Not that he’d admit it.

“You came with him?” asked Caleb, eying Dominic now.

“Yeah…I hope that’s okay?” I suddenly felt weirded-out, like maybe it was inappropriate, or presumptuous, to invite him without clearing it with the hosts first.

“Sure, it’s no problem,” he said smiling. It seemed sincere.

I looked back at where Trace and Nikki had been standing and found the spot empty. He was gone. Both of them were. Probably together. I didn’t want to care, but I kind of did.

I turned back to Dominic and found him still backed up against the wall, surrounded by my half-inebriated classmates. He looked over at me and twisted his lips into a smile. A fully kissable, dangerous smile.

He bent forward and whispered something to the girls and just like that, slipped through the pinning crowd and began walking back over to me, slowly, confidently, far more sure of himself than any other guy at this party.

“Have I told you how stunning you look tonight?” He punctuated his words with a gentle caress of my cheek.

I shook my head, biting my lower lip.

A look of torture took hold of his face when his eyes shifted down to my mouth. “Simply ravishing.”

Funny, I was thinking the same thing about him. I could feel my heart rate climbing again.

He took a step forward, fully breaking the bounds of my personal space, and leaned in close to me like only he knew how to do. I was half expecting him to jam a purse or a cup into my belly when he said, “would you like to get out of here?”

Something in his eyes was tempting me—daringme, and I was nodding even before my brain had a chance to process the offer, or what exactly I might have been agreeing to.

“I just need to use the ladies room,” I blurted out and then sashayed around him before he had a chance to respond. I snatched Taylor by the wrist on my way out of the kitchen.

“What’s up, babe?” she asked as we pushed through the boiling crowd of people.

We needed a new plan for meeting up tonight being that I was supposed to be sleeping over at her house. And I needed a splash of cold water to help get my wits together.

“Bathroom?” I asked, and then followed her upstairs to the second floor washroom.

“Look who it is, Mor.”

Nikki and Morgan were standing in front of the door with hands on their hips and scowls on their lips as soon as we rounded the corner. Somehow, it didn’t feel like a coincidence.

“Excuse us,” I said and tried to cut in between them.

“Actually, you’re not excused,” sneered Nikki as she stepped in front of me and blocked the door. “I think it’s time the two of us had ourselves a little chat.”

I crossed my arms protectively. I had no idea what she could possibly need to discuss with me (or whether or not she had any more liquor bombs planned) but I had the sneaking suspicion I wasn’t getting out of here until I heard her out.

“Trace and I are getting back together,” she blurted, smacking her scarlet lips together. “We were together last night. I just thought you should hear it from me first.”

I held myself as taut as I could and tried not to give away any of the feelings rocketing through me just then—anger, annoyance, disappointment.Jealousy.

I was unsure how to process any of this, but the last thing I wanted to do was let Nikki know she was getting to me.

“That’s really great for you,” I offered, my voice noticeably on edge. “And you’re telling me this because...?”

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